Rivet transfer slide mechanism



Aug. 24, 1954 A. WENCKUS RIVE'I TRANSFER SLIDE MECHANISM Filed Jan. 15,1949 war- I:

swam bo ADULFHE WEAK/ M5 33% M'F7R/Q Patented Aug. 24, 1954 RIVETTRANSFER SLIDE MECHANISM Adolphe Wenckus, Jackson, Mich, assignor toTomkins-Johnson Company, Jackson, Mich, a

corporation of Michigan Application January 15, 1949, Serial No. 71,160

2 Claims. (Cl. 221- 293) This invention relates to riveting machines andmore particularly to riveting machines of the kind which employ alaterally movable structure onto which a rivet or other upsettablemember is fed at a loading station from a suitable supply source andtransferred thereby to a work position where a workpiece, to which it isdesired to apply the upsettable member, can be placed over the same inposition for upsetting by a rivet set while supported upon an anvil.

An object of the invention is to provide a riveting machine havingimproved means for transferring the upsettable members from the loadingstation to the work position.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a riveting machine witha selector slide and guide structure by which the upsettable members areautomatically transferred from a hopper chute, or like supply means, toa reciprocable .slide at the beginning and end of the reciprocatorymotion thereof, the slide being mounted to transfer theupsettablemembers seriatim from the loading position to the workposition.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a riveting machinewith a reciprocable slide structure for feeding the upsettable membersseri'atim from the loading position to the work position and which slidestructure incorporates a movable gate member adapted alternately .toclose and open an upsettable member retaining socket, whereby the memberis capable of being securely supported upon the slide structure forpositioning with respect to the anvil and the rivet set prior to openingof said gate member.

The above and further objects and advantages of the invention will berendered clear from a consideration of the following description inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. I is a fragmentary vertical section of one form of riveting machinein accordance with the invention, with the rivet selector and transferslide structure shown in full lines in the position which it occupies atthe commencement of a feeding and transfer stroke and in dotted lines inthe position which it occupies at the end or" a transfer stroke, priorto opening of the gate associated with the rivet retaining socketopening on said slide structure, and

Fig. II is a plan view on the line A--A of Fig. I, showing the slidestructure in dotted lines with its gatemeinber opened, thiscorresponding to the position occupied thereby during the returnmovement of the slide structure and after leaving the rivet helddeposited in the anvil as. a result of the previous feeding movement ofthis slide structure.

Referring to the drawings, it indicates a frame upon which there ismounted a slide housing i2 incorporating an upper horizontally extendingplate Hi and a lower plate l6 vertically spaced apart to accommodate aslide l8 between them and formed in its lower portion to accommodate atwo-part slide, indicated generally at 2 0.

The top plate M has a vertical opening 22 in which the .lower end of atube 24 is anchored and provides an inlet opening 25 for the transfer ofthe rivets 2t seriatim from the tube to the supporting surface .28 ofthe front nose portion 30 of a slide 32., the latter constituting onepart of the two-part slide 20-, and the individual rivets beingdeposited onto its said surface 28 from the tube 28 via the inletopening 25, an intermediate rivet transfer opening 34 in the slide l8,an opening 39 in the fixed selector plate i6, and a discharge opening orsocket 36 in the other slide 38 of the said two-part slide 20, and thisunder the control of the slide it, which latter constitutes a selectorslide.

The selector slide i8 has a depending ledge Ml arranged to be maintainedincontact with an upstanding ledge 52 .on the slide part 38 under theaction of the coil spring 44.

The slide 32 is resiliently connected, by the coil spring 46 and screwspindle 49, with a ram it so as to be slidable relatively to the otherslide it, as and for the purpose later to be described.

The slide 32 has a rear extension it which is slidably guided beneath ablock 33 secured, as by the screw-studs 35, to move in unison with theslide 38 and to provide an abutment for the ram it, the latterbeingoperated from any convenient power source, which may include apiston and cylinder (indicated at 31) and included in an operatingcycle, which positions an overhead drum, for example and not shown, todeliver a supply of rivets to the upperend of the tube 24. The block italso forms an abutment for the upstanding ledge M of the said noseportion 30 when the latter is held'retracted by engagement with theanvil, as later described.

It should be noted that in the position of the parts as shown in FigureI, and which corresponds to the commencement of a rivet feedingmovementfrom the chute 24 to the anvil 50 and overhead reciprocablerivet set 52, the composite slide 2i! is held arrested in a positionwhere the ledge 42 is spaced from the corresponding end of the fixedselector plate. it and, accordingly,v the slide i8 is held positioned,as shown, with its rivet transfer opening 124 laterally offset from therivet inlet opening 25 and with the depending ledge All correspondinglyspaced from the selector plate, as indicated by the clearance 51.

It should also be noted that the rivet transfer opening Si is U-shapedin cross-section (Figure II) and presents its open side to the anvil 50,although provision is made whereby this side may be closed or opened bya gate member 53, pivoted at 54 upon the front end of the transfer slide38.

The anvil 50 has a vertical opening or socket 55 open at the top and atone side 56 but closed at the bottom 51. The top of the anvil isdisposed slightly below the plane of the bottom of the slide 38, wherebythe latter is free to pass over the top of the anvil to occupy theposition shown in dotted lines in Figure I, whereas the side opening 56is of a width sufficient to permit of the passage of a rivettherethrough while supported in an upright position and pushed off theslide supporting surface 28 by the slide 38, as later described. 1

In operation, and with the parts positioned as shown in full lines inFigure I, the first part of the forward reciprocation of the ram 43 willcause the slide l8 to move to the left, with the slides 38 and 32, anextent sufficient to take up the clearance 5|, when further movement ofthe slide [8 will be arrested by its contact with the selector plate "5but with its rivet transfer opening 34 axially aligned with the inletopening 25 in the upper plate 14. Thus the rivet 26a, previouslyretained upon the ledge 58 presented by the retracted slide 18. is freedto fall onto a ledge 59 now presented by the fixed selector plate I tothe lower end of the rivet transfer opening 34 and is thus held untilthe slide structure 20 makes its return movement.

While the slide 18 is thus held against further forward movement, theslide structure 25 is free to move further as a unit and carries with itthe rivet 26b, previously dropped onto the supporting surface 28 as theresult of a said return movement of the slide structure 20. This furtherforward movement of the slide structure 20 continues until the nose 30of the slide 32 abuts against the open side of the anvil -0, whenfurther forward movement of the slide 32 will be arrested by its contactwith the anvil. The other slide 38, however, continues to move forwardand this movement is attended with a compressing of the coil spring 46and a carrying of the rivet 2619 forward through the anvil side opening56, due to its retention within the socket opening 35 in the slide 33and the further forward movement of the latter over the top of the anvil50, it being understood that all this time the gate member 53 ismaintained closed, as shown in full lines in Figure II. When the partsattain the position shown in dotted lines in Figure I, the rivet 26b isfree to fall from the outlet opening 36 into the anvil opening or socket53 and at'this time the slide structure 20 will have reached the end ofits forward movement and is ready to commence its return movement. Itshould be noted, however, that the rivet deposited in the anvil has itsupper portion 260 projecting above the top of the anvil and in the pathof the return movement of the gate 53 with the guide structure 20.Consequently, during this return movement the gate is opened by contactof its one face 4| with the projecting rivet portion 266 and assumes theposition shown in dottedlines in Figure II but is eventually restored tothe closed position by contact of its other face 43 with a suitable partof the frame structure, as by contact with the wall 60, and this priorto the return arrival of the outlet opening or socket 3B opposite theopening 39 in the fixed selector plate 46. When this occurs, the slide28 will have been carried back by contact of the ledge 62 on the slide38 with the ledge 40 on the slide l8 and restored to its full lineposition as shown in Figure I where the clearance 5! again exists. In sodoing, the rivet which previously rested on the ledge 59 presented bythe fixed selector plate It will be pushed off the ledge due to thereturn movement of the slide i8 and allowed to fall through the openings39 and 36 onto the supporting surface 28 of the slide 32. The machine isthen ready for a fresh operating cycle Whereas the upstanding rivetportion 260 at the anvil 50 is free to be received in an opening of aworkpiece (not shown) positioned over the rivet and held upon the anvilwhile the rivet set 52 is actuated to perform the required upsettingoperation.

It will be appreciated that the specific details of the invention abovedescribed and shown in the drawings are given mainly by way of exampleand that the same may be variously modified depending upon particularrequirements and practical considerations and further, that the actualform and shape of the upsettable members handled by the machine may bedifferent to that shown in the drawings, it being understood that whereherein the expression "rivet is employed this is intended to coverupsettable members generally and is not restricted to any particularform or shape of rivet.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as novel and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is as follows:

1. In a feed mechanism for transferring rivets and the like from aloading station to an anvil laterally spaced from the loading station,fixed guide structure comprising vertically spaced horizontal plateseach with a vertical rivet transfer opening therethrough, said openingsbeing horizontally off-set with respect to one another, a rivet selectorslide plate having a vertical rivet transfer opening therethrough, meansmounting said selector slide plate'for limited movement in the spacebetween said horizontal plates to register its said transfer openingalternately with the openings in said horizontal plates, a rivettransfer slide having a rivet receiving opening, means mounting saidrivet transfer slide for movement with respect to said selector slide toreceive in its said rivet receiving opening a rivet selected by saidselector slide and to transfer said rivet from a said loading station toa said anvil, said transfer slide including a rivet supporting surfaceat the bottom of its said opening, and the latter being open to one sideof the transfer slide for displacement of a rivet horizontally from itssaid opening onto a said anvil, and closure means for normally closingthe transfer slide opening at its said one side only when in the rivetreceiving position.

2. Rivet feed and transfer mechanism as claimed in claim 1, said closuremeans comprising agate member carried upon said rivet transfer slide,and means pivotally mounting said gate member upon said transfer slidefor opening and closing movement with respect to said transfer slideopening.

References Cited in the file of thispatent v UNITED STATES PATENTS

